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Filter's intake-baffle clogging.

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I have an AquaClear 50, which I like very much. I baffled the intake with a panty-hose material and secured it with a zip-tie to prevent injury (or outright death) to my shrimps. The problem is that the baffle clogs every day. It'll pull in the duckweed (pushed down by the outflow) and other random detritus which builds up in short order significantly reducing the water flow in and out. I've been rubbing off the material to clear the intake and trying (key word, there) to net the then free-floating material at the same time, which does solve the problem - temporarily.

I have a Betta tank's filter baffled in the same way, to protect his fins, but it does not do this.

This fits on an AC20 - Not sure about a 50. You could also buy another sponge like it uses inside and cut a chunk off to fit over it.

You have tons of options like this.

Gas mileage isn't everythingOIIIIIIIOLack of planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part.Why pretend there are no stupid questions? Actually, There are many stupid questions: "Should I drink this bleach?" Is just one example.
Having said that, Just because it's a stupid question doesn't mean that it shouldn't be asked. It's better to know.A warm beer is better than a cold beer. Because nothing is better than a cold beer, and a warm beer is better than nothing.

I found the Fluval prefilter was a problem with the AC50, which was too powerful for these (although it works fine on my AC20). The sponge is too fine and the filter will eventually pull it into an hourglass shape. You want something a little more coarse.

+1 to SueD regarding the AC sponge with hole down middle. I just cut an X about 3/4th down through the middle after cutting sponge block into a nice size rectangle. Easy to clean and place back on too!